When lighting is added to architectural signage, it is usually done for practical purposes – to ensure the sign’s message is visible at all hours of the day. However, with architectural signage and environmental graphic design, illumination takes on other functions. Traditionally, incorporating lighting into architectural signage for design aesthetics is used for:

• Brand Identity
• Environmental Design Accents
• Wayfinding Assistance

Choosing the Right Lighting Solution for Illuminated Architectural Signage is all About Function and Need

Incorporating lighting into architectural signage can be done to enhance the signage design, promote brand identity, and improve wayfinding information. No matter what the reason, choosing the right lighting solution is important to the long-term function of the architectural signage solution. The most commonly used lighting solutions are LED strings and panels, fluorescent tubes, neon tubes, mercury vapor lamps, high intensity discharge lamps, and high-pressure sodium lamps. Determining which lighting solution to use is actually quite easy if you adhere to the “form follows function” architectural principle. For example, it would be wrong to use strings of LED lights on a tall exterior monolith sign when a single mercury vapor lamp or a few energy-efficient fluorescent tubes will illuminate the sign.

Click here to view and download our latest InfoSeries, “Illumination Design Solutions for Architectural Signage,” which is an introduction for understanding how illumination is used for brand identity and design for architectural signage.

We wanted to share a nice little article on sfgate.com by Audrey Medina titled, “5 Places Where Neon is the Highlight.” It complements our InfoSeries piece about how illumination can contribute and even create a design aesthetic for architectural signage. Here is a short excerpt from Ms. Medina’s article. Be sure to read the entire piece.Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/04/05/TRM51NSKT6.DTL#ixzz1rYgdPmAH

“Diving ladies, waving cowboys, palm trees and martini glasses once welcomed travelers all over the country. Neon signs flickered and hummed from the 1940s through the ’60s, until urban renewal projects and cheap plastic light boxes replaced most of them. These days, the art form is being revived, and signs are being rescued and restored as part of our architectural heritage. Here are highlights of where neon gas still lights up the night.”